The Republic of North Macedonia is experiencing a deep social, economic and political transformation, at the core of which is the membership to joining NATO and starting negotiations with the European Union (EU). The regional cooperation between the economies of the Western Balkans at the same time poses new challenges and presents new opportunities for the creation of a regional economic area, which should ensure a smoother transition for the region into the EU. While the new opportunities for free trade agreements and the mobility of the labour force are expected to yield positive benefits most of the economies, including the Republic of North Macedonia, are faced with internal issues such as selective rule of law, corruption and a lack of good governance.
1 Regarding Roma integration, the latest EU progress report for Republic of North Macedonia notes that the “implementation of the Roma Strategy and action plans is slow and much remains to be done for Roma inclusion in the Republic of North Macedonia.”2 Moreover, the conclusions of the second National Platform on Roma Integration, jointly organized by the Regional Cooperation Council Roma Integration 2020 Action Team and the Cabinet of the Minister without Portfolio responsible for the implementation of the Strategy for Roma 2014-2020 also highlight the lack of monitoring and the need to improve significantly reporting on and preparation of the Report on the Implementation of Roma Integration Policies. They indicate a need for greater responsibility and commitment on the part of the relevant ministries for implementation, the allocation of more funds from the state budget for implementation of the action plans, and the targeting of Roma issues in the existing (mainstream) policies. However, political processes such as the referendum on the name of the Republic, the presidential elections, NATO membership and EU accession as well as the new parliamentary elections scheduled for April 2020 set aside implementation of the Roma Strategy.
Nonetheless, the Berlin process and the adoption of the Declaration of Western Balkans Partners on Roma Integration within the EU Enlargement Process (Poznan Declaration) represent new momentum for the economies of the Western Balkans aimed at linking the enlargement process with Roma integration. As such, Roma integration is back on the agenda and the economies of the Western Balkans have reaffirmed their commitment to achieving the specific targets on employment, health, housing, education as well as civil registration and non-discrimination. The EU will monitor the implementation of the Poznan Declaration closely and it will be an integral part of the accession process for those economies requesting to join the EU. As part of this process, specific roadmaps3 on employment and housing were designed for all of the economies and included indicators of achievement that should be reached up until the Western Balkans region integrates into the EU.
The previous experience of the slow implementation of the Roma strategies in the Western Balkans underlines the need for a different approach to such an ambitious objective. The current targeted approach to Roma integration policies contributes to the existing narrative on Roma as beneficiaries of different projects through which funding has been invested but with no real improvements on the ground. This creates a false impression that reinforces stereotypes and generates hostility toward Roma in some of the economies. The efforts to mainstream Roma integration policies into existing strategies also demonstrates that such measures do not reach the Roma communities, because the criteria for participation in these measures are not adapted to the needs of Roma. In this regard, the EU Commission proposes a combination of targeted and mainstream policies with explicit but non-exclusive targeting as the best approach to achieve higher acceptance and achievement of the targets. Furthermore, the Council Recommendation on effective Roma integration measures in the EU Member States stresses, “that the goals could be achieved either by means of mainstream measures or by means of targeted measures, including specific measures to prevent or compensate for disadvantages, or by a combination of both, paying special attention to the gender dimension […] or by focusing on geographical areas that are marginalized and/or segregated.”4
Such an approach requires the participation of Roma in the design and monitoring of the programmes and their adaptability to the needs of the community. This report puts forward the main policy challenges affecting Roma in the Republic of North Macedonia in the area of education, housing, employment and health. Each of the sections below analyses the main policy frameworks and regulations in the sector/area with specific focus on recent and potential policy changes at the level and opportunities for mainstreaming Roma policies into mainstream policy. Each section concludes with a set of policy recommendations that policy makers should consider when attempting to mainstream issues pertaining to Roma. The methodology used in the preparation of this analysis is based on a desk review of existing documents such as the Programme of the Government for 2017–2020, the strategic plans and existing strategies developed in the four priority areas by the relevant ministries and the new reforms that were recently introduced on social protection, labour policy and education. Primary data was also collected through interviews conducted with representatives of the ministries.5
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1 European Policy Institute, The Western Balkans’ Bumpy quest for EU integration, p. 23, 2016. Available from http://bit. ly/2YVN0PW
2 European Commission, 2019, EU Progress Report for North Macedonia, retrieved from http://bit.ly/38TyOf6
3 Regional Cooperation Council, l2019, Roma Integration 2020, Roadmaps 2019-2021. Available from http://bit. ly/38RQK9S
4 Foundation Secretario Gitano, 2017, How to mainstream Roma inclusion in general programmes, projects and interven tion. Available from http://bit.ly/2PWbsN6
5 Although we requested a meeting with all of the relevant ministries (Ministry of Health, Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Transport and Communication, Ministry of Education and Science and the Ministry of Labour and Social affairs) only two ministries (Education and Science and Labour and Social affairs) held meetings with the research team.
